


To Be At A Loss

by Repeatinglitanies



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: A+ Parenting, Don’t copy to another site, Gen, Sibling bond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-15
Updated: 2019-04-15
Packaged: 2020-01-13 18:33:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18474685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Repeatinglitanies/pseuds/Repeatinglitanies
Summary: Why did she have to be eager to please? But Five has to acknowledge that Vanya was Vanya. He wouldn’t have gotten along with her had she been anything like him.





	To Be At A Loss

Five knew how he got into this mess. It was all Vanya’s fault. Why did she have to be so eager to please? Always ready to be helpful just to get a scrap of attention from either Dad or any of their other siblings.

It didn’t make any sense. Every last one of them were too absorbed in their own problems or so-called genius to really even spare a thought for her. Well, except for Ben who’s just as or even more so in the eager-to-please department.

She should just do whatever she wanted. And not care about what their Dad or anyone thought. When she expected nothing then she won’t end up disappointed.

But I want to be play with the others, Five.

That was Vanya’s nice way of saying that his attitude is exactly why no one (except for Vanya and Ben) wanted to hang out with him.

Well, that’s no skin off his nose.

Why can’t she just be content with playing the violin while he worked on his equations? Or look at the stars together with him on the nights they could get out of the house without anyone else the wiser? Or patch him up whenever he got injured from a mission? Or listen to him whenever he explained the finer points of spatial jumping and time travel?

But Five has to acknowledge that Vanya was Vanya. He wouldn’t have gotten along with her had she been anything like him.

There was no point in dissuading Vanya. And a part of him didn’t want to because he couldn’t remember Vanya wanting anything as much as she wanted her family’s regard. 

It was a sorry excuse for a family, in Five’s opinion. But it was the only one they’ve ever known. All he could do is let her do as she wants and pick up the pieces afterwards.

And true enough it came when no one even tried her cookies. They just came back from a mission to find the cookies on the dining table. One look and everyone assumed Grace was malfunctioning. It didn’t look that bad. Maybe a little burned at the sides.

But as Reginald said out loud, it was subpar from Grace’s usual work. He proceeded to order the cookies thrown away before Pogo could explain that Vanya was the one who made them.

Five would never forget the look on Vanya’s face when the revelation did not change Reginald’s mind.

That night, he took Vanya with him ice skating. It took some cajoling but ever willing to spend time with one of her siblings, it didn’t take long for Vanya to agree.

It was winter and the lake had frozen over. He had to pilfer the skates from a nearby store. But that was the only way to get them when your legal guardian thinks that fun should be strictly limited to Saturdays from 12 to 12:30.

Her first try at skating was more of a tentative walk on ice. He held her hand for about 15 minutes before he decided to show her what the skates can do.

And as soon as she saw Five skating, it didn’t take long for her to attempt sliding. 

Everything was going well until a telltale crack appeared and plunged him in icy waters. It was an understatement to say it was a shock to his system.

_Come on!_

He was at the limits of his powers and was unable to get himself out of this mess. 

He tried to pull himself to the surface but it seemed like everything was weighing him down: his clothes, his skin, even his breathing.

Then Vanya came into view as she grabbed his hand and try to pull him up. 

“Vanya, Let go!”

He tried to say. But the water and everything seemed in the way. This was a stupid way to die and he’d be damned if Vanya was endangered by trying to help him.

Five tried to disentangle himself only to witness Vanya falling in the water too. The ice beneath her no longer able to support her weight.

Now they were going to die here together.

Five refused to accept that. He took hold of Vanya and gathered the last stores of his energy.

_Come on!_

And suddenly a burst of energy filled him. At the next moment, they found themselves back at the manor.

There was no way they could keep their misadventure, as Reginald called it, a secret. And both came down with a fever with Vanya taking the sickness harder. He recovered quickly but Banya was still sick in bed.

Thankfully, they didn’t acquire anything serious or lose any limbs. But he hasn’t been able to check up on her the whole time he was bedridden.

Ben told him that Dad confiscated her violin. And the guilt onward at him. As soon as he could stand up (and as soon as the lights went out), he jumped to her room to find her whimpering.

“Vanya?”

No answer. She was having a nightmare.

“Vanya! Wake up!”

He shook her awake. Her eyes spilling out tears until she recognized him.

What did she do again when she had nightmares?

Oh yes!

Five proceeded to her nightstand, struck a match and lit Vanya’s lavender scented candle.

“Now breathe, Vanya. In and out.”

It took her several deep breaths until she could calm down. It was especially hard on her as she coughed just as much.

Five handed her the glass of water stationed near the bed and sat down by her side.

“This is all my fault, Vanya. I’ll make it up to you, I swear.”

Vanya looked at him, eyes blurry. But he didn’t know if it was tears or just plain sickness that made them that way. Probably both

But she smiled and with a hoarse voice said, “No, Five. It’s not your fault. We wouldn’t even be there if I did a better job in baking cookies.”

For some reason, that made Five angry. Angry that she would think she had to earn her way into her family’s heart. It was messed up.

He wanted to shout or throw something at someone, preferably Dad. But how would that help Vanya?

“Stop. We can play the blame game until the end of the world. But nothing gets resolved that way. Let’s focus on problems that have actual solutions. How long is he going to keep the violin from you?” 

Five suspected that Dad actually liked to listen to Vanya play. And besides, the point of taking away the violin was to punish her for disobeying the rules. It was the only thing that was truly Vanya’s. To take it away permanently would take away a tool to keep her in line

“Two weeks.”

“Ok. In two weeks, teach me how to play.”

Vanya was surprised.

“Wouldn’t that take time away from your time travel calculations?”

“Well I’m currently stuck. So I think music might help me get out of the rut. They said Einstein would play the violin to help him when he’s stumped.”

Vanya was visibly delighted by this 

“Really?”

“I don’t know. But I’ll find out once I time travel.”

Delight turned to worry. And Five scrambled for a way to salvage the situation

“Don’t worry about me. I will figure out how to travel safely and be back before you know it. Ok?”

He could clearly see that it did not allay her fears. So he switched to another tactic

“What were you dreaming about earlier?”

Vanya blinked and then closed her eyes, trying to remember.

“I’m not sure. All I remember is a basement. I was outside a cell. I don’t know why. But I thought- I think something wanted to get out. It was weird. I couldn’t see what was inside. And There wasnt a sound coming out. But I knew something was in there. And I didn’t want it coming out. Because if does, something bad would happen.”

“It’s just a dream, Vanya. You’re safe. You know I won’t let anything happen to you.”

The smile that lit her face reached her eyes this time.

“Now that you woke me up. I can’t get back to sleep. Can you tell me a story?”

Five gave her a knowing smirk.

“I have just the thing.”

To which he jumped to his room and back to hers with a copy of Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time to Vanya’s mock outrage


End file.
